Gray Watson's Blog -- April 2007

Blogging is a useful way for me to record my thoughts and digital travels every so often. Hope you enjoy my digital stream of consciousness.

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April 26, 2007

A lot more pressure is coming on Defense Department PR folk after hearings have been held on Pat Tillman's death and Jessica Lynch's rescue. Both of these events were heavily rewritten by PR idiots. Lynch's rescue was not that exciting and Tillman got a silver star for attacking the enemy when he died when he was shot in the head 3 times by friendly fire. The fact that they knew all this and still lied to the families and the American people is terribly unfortunate. Other sources: PBS, Guardian.
"I'm still confused as to why they chose to lie and try to make me a legend when the real heroics of my fellow soldiers that day were, in fact, legendary," Lynch said in her testimony this morning. "The American people are capable of determining their own ideals for heroes, and they don't need to be told elaborate tales."
Kevin Tillman was far more critical, as was his mother, Mary Tillman. He read an abridged version of the Silver Star award his brother was awarded posthumously: "Above the din of battle, Cpl. Tillman was heard issuing fire commands to take the fight to an enemy on the dominating high ground. Always leading from the front, Cpl. Tillman aggressively maneuvered his team against the enemy position on a steep slope. As a result of Cpl. Tillman's effort and heroic action, the trail element of the platoon was able to maneuver through the ambush position of relative safety without suffering a single casualty." Tillman said that the story "inspired countless Americans, as intended. There was one small problem with the narrative, however: It was utter fiction."
Great article about the Apple retail store success. I remember thinking that it was a good idea because I had seen and heard so much crap from CompUSA and related stores about Macintoshes. They weren't selling them right and they weren't trained to do so.
"I started to get scared," says Jobs. Looking angularly trim in his trademark mock turtleneck and jeans (shopping, one is reminded, has never been integral to his lifestyle), Jobs is describing what he saw circa 2000. The company was increasingly dependent on mega-retailers - companies that had little incentive, never mind training, to position Apple's products as anything unique. "It was like, 'We have to do something, or we're going to be a victim of the plate tectonics. And we have to think different about this. We have to innovate here.'"
The leap into retail, though, would be from a standing start. "We looked at it and said, 'You know, this is probably really hard, and really easy for us to get our head handed to us.' So we did a few things. No. 1, I started asking who was the best retail executive at the time. Everybody said Mickey Drexler, who was running the Gap (Charts)." Drexler agreed to join Apple's board. Next, Jobs went looking for the one right person to run Apple retail. The answer was Ron Johnson, then a merchandising chief at Target (Charts) who was pushing that company's hugely successful foray into affordable design.

April 18, 2007

So I stumbled across this amazing story today about Dick and Rick Hoyt the amazing father/son marathon/ironman team. Rick is physically handicapped from an accident during birth but his parents never gave up on him. During a fund-raising event, Rick told his father that he didn't feel handicapped during the competition and they have been competing ever since. Dick has swum, biked, and pushed Rick in over 200 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour Ironmans. Makes me feel like a complete slug. Good for them. Sources: copy of SI piece, Wikipedia, Cool Running.
This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston Marathon, in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their best Time? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992--only 35 minutes off the world Record, which, in case you don't keep track of these things, happens to Be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at the Time.
``No question about it,'' Rick types. ``My dad is the Father of the Century.''
And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had a Mild heart attack during a race. Doctors found that one of his arteries Was 95% clogged. ``If you hadn't been in such great shape,'' One doctor told him, ``you probably would've died 15 years ago.'' So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other's life.
Interesting article in the Glob entitled Conservatism's third failure. Although I don't agree entirely with the premise (or the scorecard), I think that the article makes good points. What I see as the failure of Conservatism with the W Bush administration is not in terms of popularity and power but a forsaking of their Conservative roots -- less government, fiscal responsibility, more state and less federal power.
Now, the third era of conservative Republican rule is collapsing -- with the most spectacular melange of overreach, incompetence, economic distress, and sheer corruption of all. But who, and what, will succeed Bush? The forces of privilege and inequality are now so deeply entrenched in America that it will take a Democratic successor at least as bold as FDR or LBJ to change course.
Just found this cool Macintosh Wake-on-Lan freeware application. It is from the same guys who wrote SpyMe which is a shareware (and resonably priced) replacement for Apple Remote Desktop. Their WakeOnLan application surveys the local network and tracks all of the machines that are online. It allows you to send them the magical wake-on-lan packet which if you have your Mac (or PC) configured correctly it will wake up out of sleep. I've been using it to wake up my main desktop computer downstairs so I can copy files to/from it from my portable in my office. Very cool.

April 11, 2007

Nuclear power is starting to enter the global warming debate. Some politicians are arguing that we are trading one evil (oil) for another (nuclear). I disagree. Nuclear power failures are like airline crashes. We take oil spills and refinery explosions in step. Large portions of our planet are polluted with oil derivatives and yet we worry about nuclear waste. It would be interesting for the federal government to take their nuclear experience from their naval vessels and federalize the nuclear power grid. Nuclear sites could be housed on current or former military bases.
"I've never been a fan of nuclear energy," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who has called it expensive and risky. "But reducing emissions from the electricity sector presents a major challenge. And if we can be assured that new technologies help to produce nuclear energy safely and cleanly, then I think we have to take a look at it."
The public's attitude toward nuclear power is more favorable when such energy is seen as part of an effort to fight climate change. Polls over the years have shown that a slim majority backs nuclear power, but a Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg survey last summer found that a larger majority, 61%, supported the increased use of nuclear energy "to prevent global warming."
The Red Cross has released its report on the humanitarian crisis in Iraq (report pdf). Not much to be surprised about. So much pain, destruction, and death. Other sources: BBC.
Shootings, bombings, abductions, murders, military operations and other forms of violence are forcing thousands of people to flee their homes and seek safety elsewhere in Iraq or in neighbouring countries. The hundreds of thousands of displaced people scattered across Iraq find it particularly difficult to cope with the ongoing crisis, as do the families who generously agree to host them.
Health-care facilities are stretched to the limit as they struggle to cope with mass casualties day-in, day-out. Many sick and injured people do not go to hospital because itre frequently threatened or targeted. treatment plants, primary health-care centres and hospitals rely mainly on back-up generators, which often break down owing to excess usage or fall victim to the chronic fuel shortages.

April 5, 2007

The Cape Wind turnbine project is one step closer to reality by getting a Determination of Adequacy from the state Office of Environmental Affairs. Here's the full statement from the Environmental Affairs Secretary Bowles. Great news although I'll believe it when I can see those blades spinning!!
"My obligation under MEPA is to ensure that the impacts of construction and operation of the portions of the project within Massachusetts's jurisdiction have been adequately avoided, minimized, and mitigated. I find that they have," said Secretary Bowles. "Based on the air quality benefits, as well as the compensatory mitigation measures detailed in this Certificate, I find that the environmental benefits and compensatory mitigation provided by the project are adequate to mitigate the impacts of the project occurring in Massachusetts."

April 3, 2007

I have a friend who was on flight 1989, the only 767 out of Logan the morning of 9/11 going to California which was not hijacked. I just finished scanning in her scrapbook from the time. Some interesting pieces and memorabilia that take me back, at least partially, to my feelings on the day. Also, I just came across fascinating account from the Flight 1989 flight-deck written by one of her pilots.
I can't tell you how it felt to watch that United 767 hit the side of that building over and over again. We saw that plane on the ground at Logan. We probably walked past the crew, and the terrorists (something that haunts me to this day). We saw him taxi out. We were flying the same plane to the same place. The only difference was the paint job. It was only then that I realized how close we had come to being that crew. I still wait to hear that our plane was on the list, but the terrorists missed their connection or somebody forgot the Koran. I realized also that I wouldn't be doing any sleeping.

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